Sidenor will stop for 20 days intermittently due to the “lack of control” in electricity prices

The Basque steelworks Sidenor has decided stop production from its main plant of Basauri (Bizkaia) in a way intermittent until Christmas before the “exorbitant” price you pay for electricity you need to carry out your manufacturing processes. In the last year the price has increased by more than 300% going from 60 euros per megawatt hour to 260 euros.

This was announced this Monday by the metallurgical company, which is the Spanish leader in the manufacture of long special steels for different industrial uses, in a statement in which it states that “this increase in electricity costs represents an additional 200 euros per tonne, or that is, an increase in manufacturing costs of more than 25% “, which” causes losses and makes it impossible to maintain the current rate of production “.

As a first measure in the face of this rising cost of electricity for industrial uses, Sidenor’s management has decided to stop the production of its main plant in Basauri for 20 days, that is, 30% of the scheduled productive days, from now until December 31.

The steelmaker specifies that “this is a first measure to try to limit the tremendous impact that the exorbitant and uncontrolled electricity costs are causing to Sidenor”, but warns that, by itself, “it does not solve the underlying problem” so considers that it will be necessary to adopt “other measures” to persist “the current outlook of lack of control in electricity prices.”

It also specifies that although this stop directly and immediately affects the main Basauri plant, “it will also progressively affect the rest of the plants” that it has in other parts of the Basque Country and Cantabria and Catalonia.

The committee requests the reports that justify the stop

For its part, the union IS IT OVER THERE has pointed out that in a meeting held this Monday with the management, from the union side “they wanted to delve into the reasons for this decision, requesting information on both the orders in the portfolio, as well as their costs, as well as knowing the impact of the increase in electricity “.

According to the central, “Detailed information on the company’s contract with the electricity companies has also been requested” and “no response has been received except for the generic mention of the increase in the price of electricity,” he criticized in a note.

The union has considered it “essential” to have more information “to know the reasons for the measure.”

ELA has regretted that state-level unions “have granted great flexibility” to the company in regulating working conditions in the company.

He also recalled that the renewal of the agreements for the Vitoria and Basauri plants is near and warned that “these types of measures have always been used to justify agreements that worsen working conditions.”

The Union LAB has shown his “surprise” by the announcement of Sidenor and has expressed his wish that it is not about a company “strategy” of using staff to lobby to the electricity companies or the Spanish Government in relation to the price of energy.

“We workers are already paying the increase in the bill at our homes and it seems that now we are going to have to be the ones who also pay for the increased cost of energy in companies,” LAB sources told Europa Press.

The Basque Government will meet with the affected sectors

On the other hand, the Basque Government has stated that its “concern” about the impact of the “unmeasured” increase in the price of energy on the economic recovery has been “increased” by Sidenor’s announcement.

In this sense, the Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and the Environment and the Basque Energy Agency finalize a report that will include concrete measures that can alleviate “the energy cost blow” to the Basque industry.

The document will be transferred to the Spanish Government and the European Commission, and will be shared with the industrial sectors in a meeting that will take place next Friday.